Craft fair ideas to sell to children

fly2castSeptember 13, 2007

I have gone to many craft fairs over the years and they all seem to sell the same stuff. Many people attend but rarely do I see anything sell except for food and little things people sell to children for a buck or two. And every kid has something whether its those balloons filled with water attached to a rubber band or a ride in a 'train' pulled by a lawnmore tractor. But there really isn't anything else for children. There is a ton of money to be had for the right idea. People here want to buy but the crafts kind of suck, pardon my French.

My thought is that I would like to set up a booth to sell a number of small items that kids will want that cost only a few bucks but I'm at a loss for ideas. The fairs we have around here will only allow things that are home-made. Does anyone have any ideas or where to find some ideas?

I don't know if this will interest you, but last season I made craft kits for kids - very simple to fairly complex crafts geared for children to make to keep themselves entertained over the Christmas season or to give to family as gifts. They are somewhat time intensive to put together, but I'll tell ya, they sold very very well. I made 30 of each kit and some of them I could have sold double that.
If you want to know more about this post me a note and I'll go into more detail.
Suzan J

I thought this was the stupidest craft for kids ... till I tried it . ( and saw people buying it left & right ! ) I liked it ! This lady sold tall glass jars - filled with bird seed ... and she put inside 12 or more little trinkets . Paper clips, tacks , beans , buttons ... etc . The idea was to shake the bottle to find the objects in the bird seed and check it off the list. When the kids are done - they can feed the birds with the seeds. She sold them for only a couple bucks - and sold out.
Maybe you can expand on this idea .... !

I made these one year and they went like hotcakes. They are fast, inexpensive to make and kids go straight for them. Make sure you leave the peppermints wrapped (it looks like they arent in the pic). I turned the kiss the other way so that the paper sticking out of the top was the smoke.

You make a great point! Every craft show I go to has the same old kids crafts and my kiddos always want to buy something! People need to come up with some new things!

I'm trying to think of things my kids have bought.....

Pillows- just small ones in different kid friendly fabric patterns. DS had to have a camo one for on his bed!

Doll sleeping bag-DD bought this last year. It was made of fleece, nicely sewn together with a built-in pillow. She bought it for her stuffed unicorn (something like Build-A-Bear but it's a local store) and uses it quite often!

Purses-just simple tote like bags done in different kid patterns again. DD had Dora the Explorer and My Little Pony. Both were under $5 and she drags them everywhere.

Rubber band guns-DS has bought several in different designs. The guns have a clothespin that holds the band until you push on the pin and it lets go. You could sell simple targets for them to shoot at.

Marshmallow gun- small PVC pipe and pieces put together and you pull out one section and push in, forcing air through the pipe to shoot out a small marshmallow.

I think personalized things are popular, too. It's especially nice when you can personalize while you wait so that those kids that don't have the most popular names can get something with their name on it! My kid's have signs for their bedrooms that the guy had several themes and then you picked the sign, the color for the wording and told him the name. My MIL bought them for the kid's and DD loves hers because it has some glow-in-the-dark paint in spots on her dragon fly!

How about some sort of kid's jewelry?

I think there are a lot of ideas out there, some good, some not so good but often it's the quality and price that really gets you! You can make the same thing as the next guy but if you put a little more thought into it and and price them well, yours will sell out faster!

My boys do like leather jewelry or masculine neclaces with dragons on them. And I posted a link to these pvc kaleidoscopes I've recently seen some kids with.
Oh and my kids are into maps and compasses right now too so maybe you could come up with a little kit with those things and add an eyepatch or headband?? ~Anj

A few days ago I was standing in line at a craft store. I struck up a conversation with another guy in line. He told me that he use to just walk around selling helium balloons for $1 and made a bunch of money that way. I was thinking about it later that day. Selling balloons is nothing new but I can't remember ever seeing anybody selling them at any of the fairs here. I know all my four kids always love balloons.

Another possiblity might be magic tricks. Make some easy magic tricks and perform them at the fairs. It would be new around here.

I just remembered that my sis made these for little girls --- fancy Tiaras - ( made from headbands ) She made them look so fancy -- long flowing ribbons ... glitter stars .... flowers . She also sold matching Magic wands ...a stick with a glitter star on it and long flowing ribbons ...
I remember she sold out . The little girls were so busy being faries that they behaved themselves ! LOL

On a side note about the helium balloons - that's a great idea ! Here's a cheaper idea ... ( no helium ) Have a bunch of trinkets numbered one to - whatever . Just blow up balloons with a folded paper inside of them with a number written on it . Let the kids buy the balloon - make something goofy / cute to pop the balloon with .... they "win" the trinket that the number corresponds with. saw this at Church festivals ... trinkets cost pennies ...
I bet you'll have a line at your booth !

danaoh...I havent made them for many years but we charged 1.25 for them. I think we put a candy bar on the bottom instead of gum and didnt make it an ornament (they dont make it to the tree).

toomuchglass...You are so right on those fairy wands and hairpieces with flowing ribbons. I had two girls and we couldnt get out of a fair without them having those. Boy, I havent thought of that in years lol. My girls are 25 and 26 now.

Simple face painting is an easy money maker. Im not talking body art but rather easy painted hearts, flowers, and stars. My kids had them done at the last craft fair and they were only $1. When your at the fair with your kids you dont want to spend alot of money. I have 3 kids so it can quickly add up.

I sell candy airplanes for 50Â¢ each and juice pouch change purses for $2.00. For Halloween I sell the tootsie pop spiders for 50Â¢ each. I also make pig cookies for 50Â¢ each. Plus I sell the yoyo balloons for $1.00. I make the girls flip flops and sell them for $5.00 and headbands for $4.00. Scarves are $6.00. A lot of parents with kids come to my booth because even though it is quality, it is affordable. Bonnie

Beaded necklaces, stretchy arm braclets are popular and with the warnings about childrens jewelery from China, parents would like home made ones.
Also notebooks with plain/plaid/printed paper the child could add pictures and short verses/letters/comments.
There are 5x8 notebooks avaiable.

I've seen ceramic tile squares turned into tic tac toe games. The lady explained to me that she uses colored electrical tape to do the lines, and glass gems for the x's and o's, and also glues 4 gems underneath for feet. She puts the games inside small fabric pouches that she sews together with a drawstring at the tops. She says they're best sellers everytime.

I was also going to suggest making cradle purses with the little dolly inside, but they can be expensive and not everyone is into crochet or knitting. I've seen these sell from $4 - $15 on ebay at several different times of the year.

I love the helium balloon idea-I'm not a kid, but would definitely buy one if they were being sold! The marshmallow guns were a big item at some of the shows I've been to. Anything that would keep the kids occupied while parents are trying to look/shop would be a good idea.

You could probably sell dreamcatchers for a $1.50 if you wanted to. Making them ain't easy though. You could sell badges and bookmarks, badges could be $0.20 and bookmarks $0.66. How about glass beads into bracelets and necklaces or a colouring competition with a prize. Guess the name of the teddy or doll, guess the weight of the cake or guess the amount of money in a pot. Hope it helps!
Bye
Boddle x

Hi well Iam a kid girl and I love these flower bows you could make those all you do is buy a fake flower and then buy a clip and put fabric on it [option]then buy a jule and glue it on thanks for reading this bye:D

lollipop flowers are a good idea in my opinion all you need is a straw a lollipop and some paper just shove the lollipop in the straw and cut out some pedals and glue them on too there you go you got a good craft idea

At a fair at one DS's school a hundred years ago there was a "pocket Lady" She had a large coat on with a lot of pockets that contained simple little toys. The kids could dip into one of the pockets and get a prize. I think at that time it was a quarter. A great hit

I do dream catchers for adults and they sell well we also have been selling smaller ones cheap i also got some cheap charms and are going to make bracelets and stuff i am booking a number of craft shows this summer and we are raising money for the avon foundation our goal is to raise $7,000 by june of 2012 and my sister is making sock monkeys also

Crayon rolls have been popular here. Since my daughter is now 7, I've "adapted" the pattern to make colored pencil rolls and marker rolls. And just recently I've adapted the idea to make a lip gloss pouch.

When she was smaller, I made ballerina tutus. With tulle and blanket binding.

Here's something I am trying for the first time, although the idea is not new.

Buy a pack of regular sized clothespins--the kind that have a spring clip. Choose one side to decorate. Paint that side with acrylic paint. Then mix glossy Mod Podge with a LOT of glitter (maybe equal parts). Use glitter that matches the color of the paint. Paint it on top of the dried paint. Once the Mod Podge dries, the glitter will NOT FLAKE OFF! Then cut up adhesive magnetic strips and glue them to the back of the pin.

You sell them as glittered clips that will adhere to a refrigerator, school locker, or file cabinet (for grownup children).

A couple of notes (learn from my trial and error). I used paint pens to make decorating easier. I "painted" (drew) multicolor stripes and glittered them, making rainbow clips. I made the mistake of Mod Podge-ing the back of the clips and then the adhesive on the magnet strip would come off after a couple of days. (So leave the wood on the back in its raw state.) The strips stay on better if the clip is attached to the fridge vertically; when it's horizontal the glue seems to pull off more.

I'm attaching a link to a crayon roll tutorial. Just by changing dimensions I was able to adapt for the colored pencils, markers, lip gloss. I recently made one to hold my sisters collection of crochet hooks.

A few years ago a lady was doing finger print pictures. She would take a finger print from a child onto a nice paper and turn the finger print into a mouse or other character with a little scenery and then frame it into a simple frame and sell them. They were a great hit but I have no idea of how to draw the pictures. She made mice and kittens out of the finger print.